About

Welcome to Mary Garoutte Fine Art; the blog I use as a visual diary to post old and new art, inspiration, as well as updates and doodles of what’s happening in my studio…

I am an emerging visual artist who works outside of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Originally from Mesa, Arizona, it’s has been a long journey to find my artistic roots in Eastern Canada.

I studied painting at NSCAD University, and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2004. Since graduation, I have taught painting and drawing workshops to adults and children, notably the NSCAD School of Extended Studies. I have also had the opportunity to exhibit in both solo and group exhibitions throughout Canada and internationally.

Nowadays, I occupy my time between working part-time as an arts administrator and private art instructor and part-time as a professional visual artist.

Major influences which I attribute the aesthetic of my work include the bold palettes and illustrative quality of work by Canadian Artists such as the Group of Seven & Robert Genn, and American artist Wayne Thiebaud (who, interestingly enough, is also from Mesa); and all whom share a similar love through their generosity of the medium.

I am inspired by the quaint beauty of the land, as well as urban landscape and historical architecture that predominates the Eastern Canadian coast. I am attracted to the genre of the landscape, as well as depicting figurative scenes in a narrative sense. Recently, my work has harkened back to painting from the earlier half of the 20th Century; with it’s earthy, jewel-toned palette and graphic quality.

Thank you for your interest in my work. I am delighted that you like the painting with the red bicycle in it. The bike is only one small part of the painting, as it is a cropping or detail of a larger work.

I would be happy to email you some images of my work. Unfortunately, I don’t have my web site completed yet, which will act as my online portfolio of past and present works. In the meantime, I use this blog, but eventually I will link it to the site, once it’s finished, which will hopefully tidy things up from the disparate nature in how the artwork is currently floating around from one social network to another..